26/10/2026
‼️ FAO: Landlords and Letting Agents in Scotland. Re:- Competent persons Awaab’s Law.
Under Awaab's Law, a competent person is someone who has the skills and experience to inspect and assess damp or mould, rather than someone tied to a mandatory government-run accreditation or certification scheme.
Definition and Requirements
• Legal Definition: A competent person is determined by the reasonable opinion of the LANDLORD! as having the appropriate skills and experience to assess damp, mould, and necessary repairs.
• No Mandatory Scheme: There is no specific government certification or statutory qualification required, leaving landlords responsible for assessing competency.
• Recommended Backgrounds: Landlords generally are asked to assess for practical experience, backgrounds in surveying or property maintenance, familiarity with housing standards, and knowledge of specialized work like ventilation and building pathology.
As you see it’s legally the LANDLORD who is responsible to check for competency.
Why I am emphasising this is a legal requirement. I’ve seen since 6th October reports that are far from compliant. Most I have been asked to review lack the following:-
Severity & Risk Assessment
• Severity Level: missing
• Impact Assessment: missing
These have come from electricians, cleaning companies and new starts.
I get you need a report within 10 days and competent people aren’t available but using incompetent people is actually worse that waiting for a competent surveyor.
I have said for years “stay in your lane” that’s never been more appropriate in the past few weeks…
House cleaners doing damp reports and forming opinion they recommend using bleach based sprays just shows how flawed this legislation actually is.
You can advise you agent you are awaiting a competent person and your tenant will have to reasonably wait. That’s the guidance so you are not pushed to use someone who just doesn’t have the skill set or experience (competency) to write you a true, accurate and compliant report.
